Trailer and mobile home anchoring device

ABSTRACT

An anchoring device for trailers, mobile homes and similar vehicles in which an arm is provided with a securing means at opposite ends, the lower securing means consisting of a hooked portion for extending beneath the edge of the concrete slab or runner and the upper portion preferably being a hook member for attachment to a frame member on the vehicle, and a means for varying the length of the arm to secure the vehicle in place on the runner or slab. When the vehicle is to be secured to a runner, another embodiment may be used consisting of a pair of arms pivotally connected to one another, each having hooks at the upper and lower ends facing one another for gripping the runner and a member on the under side of the vehicle. Each arm contains an adjustable means such as a turnbuckle for varying the length of the arms, to secure the vehicle on the runner.

United States Patent 1 Shidaker et al.

[451 Feb. 26, 1974 1 TRAILER AND MOBILE HOME ANCHORING DEVICE [76] Inventors: Clyde L. Shidaker, 1406 w. Siitth St., Mishawaka, lnd. 46544; Joseph H. Manning, 57046 Mayflower Rd., I South Bend, Ind. 46619 [22 Filed: Mar. 29, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 239,230

[52] US. Cl 52/163, 52/23, 52/146, 52/169 [51] Int. Cl E02d 5/74 [58] Field of Search 52/23, 148, 149, 143, 169, 52/146, 163; 248/354 B, 354 S, 361 R, 361 A [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,403,487 10/1968 Docter 52/148 3,606,231 9/1971 Kilborn 52/149 X 2,306,537 12/1942 Hamm 1 52/23 X 2,045,478 6/1936 Kuehn 52/23 X 3,054,151 9/1962 S'hankland 248/361 A X 3,335,531 8/1967 Grimelli et a1 52/146 X Primary Examiner-H'enry C. Sutherland Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Hobbs & Green 57 ABSTRACT An anchoring device for trailers, mobile homes and similar vehicles in which an arm is provided with a securing means at opposite ends, the lower securing means consisting of a hooked portion for extending beneath the edge of the concrete slab or runner and the upper portion preferably being a hook member for attachment to a frame member on the vehicle, and a means for varying the-length of the arm to secure the vehicle in place on the runner or slab. When the vehicle is to be secured to a runner, another embodiment may be used consisting of a pair of arms pivotally connected to one another, each having hooks at the upper and lower ends facing one another for gripping the runner and a member on the under side of the vehicle. Each arm contains an adjustable means such as a turnbuckle for varying the length of the arms, to secure the vehicle on the runner.

4 Claims, Drawing Figures abrasive? Pmimmraazsm SHEET 2 OF 2 In many mobile home and trailer parks, the vehicle is placed on a slab of concrete or on two parallel concrete runners and is frequently anchored to prevent high winds from turning the vehicle over or otherwise moving it from its supporting slab or runners. If the trailers or mobile homes are not anchored they may be blown from their supports into other trailers or mobile homes in the adjacent area, causing not only more serious damage to'the particularvehicle but also'extensive damage to the other vehicles which may have been protected by anchors. Various types of anchoring devices have been used in the past, including. guy wires or straps connected to ground fixtures, either permanently or temporarily inserted in the ground, using the earth to form the required holding action and weight to restrain the vehicle and hold it in place during times of high winds. It is often desirable to use temporary or removable ground anchor fixtures, since the owner may wish to move the vehicle frequently from place to place and to have the vehicle effectively anchored at each place. However, those fixtures which must be inserted deeply into the ground to be effective occasionally encounter poor ground conditions which prevent the fixtures from holding firmly or sometimes encounter bed I on or recessed slightly in the ground on which the FIG. 5 is a still different embodiment of the present anchoring device.

Referring more specifically to the drawings and to FIG. 1 in particular, numeral indicates generally a mobile home having an under carriage l2, longitudinal frame members 14 and 16 and an I-beam construction,

and numerals 20 and 21 indicate concrete runners laid wheels of the under carriage of the mobile home rest. The runners may be 4 to 6 inches in thickness and approximately 18 to 24 inches wide. The mobile home 10 illustrated in the drawings may be considered conventional for the purpose of the present invention and would normally have a door 22 and a plurality of windows 24 for the various rooms in the vehicle. A set of steps may be placed at the door and a tip-out section rock or other hard obstructions in the earth which prevent the fixture from being fully inserted in place for effective holding action. Various other types of anchor fixtures may 'be in use, but those generally require a substantial amount of time and effort to complete the installation. It is therefore one of the principal objects of the present invention to provide an anchor for trailers and mobile homes which utilizes the concrete slab or runners on which the vehicle is placed to hold the ground fixtures, and which can be readily installed in place and easily adjusted to give effective restraining action to the vehicle.

Another object of the invention is to provide an anchor device for trailers and mobile homeswhich is simple in construction and canreadily be adapted to various types of vehicle designs and to various slab and runner structures, and which can be used either for slab or runner installations without any. substantial change in the functional members of the device.

A further object is to provide a trailer'and mobile home anchoring device which is relatively inconspicuous and does not detract from' the appearance of the vehicle and which does not interfere with the use of other refinements, such as steps, tip-out section s, enclosures between the ground and the bottom of the vehicle or the addition of separate room structures.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. I is a perspective view of a trailer and two concrete runners on which the trailer is supported and to which the trailer is anchored by the present anchoring device;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary viewof thetrailer, runners and anchoring device shown in FIG. 1;-

FIG. 3 is an enlarged elevational view of one embodiment of the anchoring device shown in the preceding figures;

FIG.- 4 is an enlarged elevational view of a different embodiment of the present anchoring device; and

may be included, for example, in the unseen side of the mobile home, which projects outwardly substantially beyond the side of the mobile home. While the beams 14 and 16 are shown as an I-beam configuration, other configurations, such as the C or channel configuration may be used, the beams forming a basic frame construction of fabricated steel having a tongue 26 which projects forwardly from the vehicle for towing.

The trailer or mobile home anchoring device forming the subject matter of the present invention, in the em bodiment of FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, consists of basically two arms 30 and 32, each arm having an upper hooked portion 34 for engaging the lower flange 36 of one of the longitudinal beams of the trailer and a'hooked portion 38 at the bottom for engaging the lower part of one of the runners 20 or 21. The two hooked portions 34 of each arm 30 and 32 engage opposite sides of lower flange 36 of the I-beam, and hooked portions 38 engage the under side of the opposite edges of the runners 20 or 21. In order to securely hold the mobile home in place, the hooked portion 38 of each arm extends inwardly and is provided with a lug or claw 40 on the lower end thereof for extending under and engaging the under side of the runner, thus securely holding the anportions 34 in place on the lower flange of the I-beam.

Since there are differences in the construction from one mobile home to another and hence often differ ences in the distance between the runners and 'the frame of the vehicle, the two arms are made adjustable, each having a turnbuckle type means disposed in the center thereof, each turnbuckle type means consisting of upper and lower threadedrods 52 and 54 rigidly joinedto the adjacent ends of portions 34 and 38 and secured thereto by one or more rivets 56 and 58, respectively. As the turnbuckle is rotated, the respective arm either extends or contracts in length, thus adjusting the device to the distance between the lower surface of the runner and the beam to which the device is attached. The two arms are pivoted to one another by rivet 60 so that the two portions 34 tend to close in on the I-beam and the two portions38 tend to close in on the runner whenever there is a-tendency for the distance between the beam and the runner to increase, such as would normally be experienced under the influence of a high wind, thus tending to increase the securing action of the device. However, as the distances decrease, the two portions do not tend to expand since the I-beam is free to move downwardly away from the claws 42 without causing any movement in portions 34 toward or away from one another.

In installing the anchoring device, the turnbuckles are turned in the direction to lengthen the two arms 30 and 32 so that the portions 34 and 38 will slide easily into the gripping positions illustrated in the drawings. After the two portions 38 have been inserted in the ground with the claws thereof beneath the edges of the runners, and the upper ends or claws 42 are seated over flange 36, the turnbuckles are tightened to take up any slack and remove the play or other looseness which otherwise might be present in the device after it has initially been installed. The ends of portions 38 can be readily pushed into the ground to a point where the claws or lugs 40 will slip beneath the runners without the need for digging a hole. However, in some installations it may be necessary to remove sufficient earth to locate firm and substantial edges of the runners. After the turnbuckles have been tightened in place, further service of or attention to the anchoring device is not necessary, since they will automatically adjust themselves to retain the vehicle in the secure position in the runners, i.e., if the wind tends to lift the vehicle, the portions 34 and 38 are urged inwardly, thereby increasing their gripping action on the beam and runners, respectively.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 4, a single arm 70 is used to secure the mobile home to a slab 72. The single arm is substantially the same as one of the double arms in the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3.. Hence, like numerals have been given to like parts in the two embodiments. The single arm embodiment of FIG. 4, which can be used with either a runner or a slab, includes a further variation consisting of a single round rod 74 above the is turned in the direction to expand the arm, permitting.

the claws or lugs on the end portions 34 and 38 to be inserted on the lower flange of the l-beam and beneath the runner, respectively. The turnbuckle is then tightened to draw the two end portions 34 and 38 toward one another sufficiently to form a firm connection between the l-beam and the slab.

In the embodiment of FIG. 5 the lower portion and the lower part of the turnbuckle are the same as that found in the embodiments in FIGS. 1 and 4. However, the upper portion 34 has been replaced by a securing means indicated generally by numeral 80 consisting of an eye bolt 82 having a threaded shank which extends through a hole in flange 36 of the l-beam and is secured therein by nut 84. An eye bolt 86 is used in the upper part of the turnbuckle, and the two eye bolts are connected by a metal strap 88 or other suitable connecting member such as a cable or rod. After the eye bolt 82 has been inserted in the hole in flange 36 and the claw or lug of portion 38 has been seated beneath slab 72, the turnbuckle is tightened to pull the mobile home firmly toward the slab, and thus securely anchor it in place on the slab for withstanding high winds, gales and other weather disturbances.

For greater security, a strap or cable 76 may be connected to lug 78, illustrated in FIG. 4, on the arm of any one of the embodiments, and placed over the vehicle body and connected .to a similar lug on the anchoring device on the opposite side of the vehicle. The strap or cable 76 may consist of a short section connected to the arm and to the vehicle body along the outside edge thereof, the short sections being used with the devices on opposite sides of the vehicle.

While a mobile home has been shown as the vehicle anchored by the present anchoring device, other types of trailers and vehicles may be secured by the present device without changing its basic structure. FIG. 1 shows three of the anchoring devices on each side. However, longer or shorter vehicles may require a different number. One of the advantages of our anchoring device is that it can be readily attached to the trailer and put on the runner or slab when the trailer is being located and can be quickly removed when the trailer is to be removed, and yet will hold the trailer firmly in place as long as the trailer remains in any particular location.

While only three embodiments of our trailer and mobile home anchoring device have been described in detail herein, various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

We claim:

1. An anchoring device for securing trailers, mobile homes and similar vehicles to a slab or a pair of runners, comprising a first arm having a hooked portion at its lower end for hooking beneath one side of a runner on which the vehicle is parked, a second arm connected to said first arm and having a hooked portion at its lower end for hooking beneath the other side of the runner, a means connecting said arms to a member of the vehicle, and a means in each of said arms for varying the length thereof to secure the vehicle in place on the runner, said means connecting said arms to a member of the vehicle consisting of a hooked portion on the upper end of each arm with said hooked portions facing one another, and a means pivotally connecting said arms between said upper and lower hooked portions.

2. An anchoring device for trailers, mobile homes and similar vehicles as defined in claim 1 in which said means for varying the length of the arm to secure the vehicle in place on the runner consists of a turnbuckle in each arm.

3. An anchoring device for trailers, mobile homes and similar vehicles as defined in claim 1 in which a means is provided on the arm for attaching a security line to the vehicle.

4. An anchoring device for trailers, mobile homes and similar vehicles as defined in claim 3 in which said means consists of a lug for holding an end of the line in a fixed position on the arm along the lower portion thereof. 

1. An anchoring device for securing trailers, mobile homes and similar vehicles to a slab or a pair of runners, comprising a first arm having a hooked portion at its lower end for hooking beneath one side of a runner on which the vehicle is parked, a second arm connected to said first arm and having a hooked portion at its lower end for hooking beneath the other side of the runner, a means connecting said arms to a member of the vehicle, and a means in each of said arms for varying the length thereof to secure the vehicle in place on the runner, said means connecting said arms to a member of the vehicle consisting of a hooked portion on the upper end of each arm with said hooked portions facing one another, and a means pivotally connecting said arms between said upper and lower hooked portions.
 2. An anchoring device for trailers, mobile homes and similar vehicles as defined in claim 1 in which said means for varying the length of the arm to secure the vehicle in place on the runner consists of a turnbuckle in each arm.
 3. An anchoring device for trailers, mobile homes and similar vehicles as defined in claim 1 in which a means is provided on the arm for attaching a security line to the vehicle.
 4. An anchoring device for trailers, mobile homes and similar vehicles as defined in claim 3 in which said means consists of a lug for holding an end of the line in a fixed position on the arm along the lower portion thereof. 